Donald Trump’s push to end birthright citizenship isn’t just about undocumented immigrants, and the potential impact could reach far wider than many might expect.

Donald Trump signed an executive order targeting the long-standing policy. The move would prevent children born in the United States from automatically receiving citizenship if their parents are in the country unlawfully or on temporary visas. That includes individuals on tourist, student, or work visas, according to Al Jazeera.

If implemented, this would mark a significant break from the 14th Amendment, which has guaranteed citizenship to anyone born on U.S. soil since 1868.

While much of the focus has been on undocumented immigrants, the policy stretches beyond that. Children born to undocumented parents would be among the most directly impacted, according to VT. Data from Pew Research shows that in 2022 alone, around 1.2 million U.S. citizens were born to undocumented immigrants. Under Trump’s proposal, those children would no longer automatically qualify for citizenship. But the changes wouldn’t stop there.

Who would be affected?

Children born to parents legally living in the U.S. on temporary visas, including H-1B workers, international students, tourists, and other visa holders, would also be excluded from birthright citizenship.

The order has triggered significant legal opposition. Attorneys general from 22 states have filed lawsuits challenging the move. Connecticut Attorney General William Tong, who was born a U.S. citizen and is the first Chinese American elected attorney general, also pushed back strongly:

“The 14th Amendment says what it means, and it means what it says – if you are born on American soil, you are an American. Period. Full stop,” he said According to VT.

“There is no legitimate legal debate on this question. But the fact that Trump is dead wrong will not prevent him from inflicting serious harm right now on American families like my own.”

Supreme Court steps in

The issue has reached the U.S. Supreme Court, which began hearing arguments on Wednesday. According to The Independent, Trump attended the hearing but left before it concluded, marking the first time a sitting president has taken part in Supreme Court proceedings of this kind.

Ahead of the hearing, Trump shared his stance on Truth Social:

“Birthright Citizenship is not about rich people from China, and the rest of the World, who want their children, and hundreds of thousands more, FOR PAY, to ridiculously become citizens of the United States of America. It is about the BABIES OF SLAVES!,” he wrote and continued: “We are the only Country in the World that dignifies this subject with even discussion. Look at the dates of this long ago legislation – THE EXACT END OF THE CIVIL WAR!

“The World is getting rich selling citizenships to our Country, while at the same time laughing at how STUPID our U.S. Court System has become (TARIFFS!). ‘Dumb Judges and Justices will not a great Country make!’”